Radiation Therapy Report: Radiotherapy

Radiation Therapy Report

What is Radiation Therapy?

Radiation Therapy also known as Radiotherapy uses high energy radiation. Radiation is energy which can come from many different sources. Light, heat and microwaves are all forms of radiation. Radiation Therapy is used to destroy cancer cells, shrink tumours, reduce the size of cancer, relieve pain but it also can kill healthy cells. Radiation Therapy can be the main treatment to hopefully cure cancer but also can help other treatments, like chemotherapy. Although, Radiation Therapy does cure cancer in many cases, there are numerous slide affects, which can occur. This include, dry, red or itchy skin, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, hair loss and coughs. Radiation Therapy success rate

Radiation Therapy outside the body occurs with an external beam while inside the body uses brachytherapy. A machine guides radiation to the cancer spot and the tissue surrounding the area by an external beam. To receive Radiation Therapy inside the body, a radioactive material is placed in tubes, then placed near the cancer. Furthermore, you can receive systemic radiation. This a method which involves radioactive drugs being inserted into your veins or given though orally. When you receive External Radiation Therapy you don’t become

Ionizing Radiation is defined as any electromagnetic wave or particles which carries a sufficient amount of energy to remove electrons from an atom. When an electron has enough energy to break away from an atom, it is classified as ionization. Ultra Violet, X-rays and Gamma Rays have enough energy to be classified as ionizing. There are three main types of Ionizing Radiation, they include, alpha particles, beta particles and gamma rays and x-rays. Gamma rays and x-rays have short wavelengths, 1 million, millionth of a metre and high frequencies, around 100 billion, billion hertz. These numbers are so high they have enough energy to take away electrons from atoms or break up a nucleus of an atom. Radiation Therapy uses energy particles or waves from gamma rays, x-rays, protons or electron beams. These contain small particles called photons. Photons are what destroys the cancer cells or the tumour. To destroy the cancer the sub-atomic particles take and remove the electrons from the cells. In addition, they destroy larger molecules by chemical compounds. Photons also disrupt the genetic code in the DNA of cells. When this occurs it stops the proteins creating cell